Professor Blames Media for Tweet He Sent About Soldier?

The jerk decided to send a Tweet about how he felt. Not bad enough he actually feels that way, but when he was confronted for his actions, he turned around and blamed the media?

Professor tweets ‘trying not to vomit’ when person gives seat to soldier
FOX 8 News
BY CNNWIRE
MARCH 31, 2017

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania — A Drexel University professor tweeted that he was “trying not to vomit or yell about Mosul” after he watched a first-class passenger give up his seat for a uniformed soldier on an airplane.

Many on Twitter responded to the professor’s comments with anger and outrage.

George Ciccariello, associate professor of politics and global studies, posted the tweet Sunday on his private Twitter account. CNN obtained his tweet from a retweet someone else posted publicly on the social media platform.

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Chief Petty Officer Jason C. Finan Died Saving Lives

Navy EOD tech died directing SEALs, Iraqis away from roadside bomb
STARS AND STRIPES
By TARA COPP
Published: October 23, 2016

Chief Petty Officer Jason C. Finan, 34, of Anaheim, California, was identified Friday as the servicemember killed by an improvised explosive device while serving in an advisory role with Iraqi coalition troops.

U.S. Navy photo

IRBIL, Iraq — Chief Petty Officer Jason Finan, the Navy explosives ordinance disposal technician who was the first American killed in the battle to retake Mosul from the Islamic State group, died while warning the forces he was supporting about a roadside bomb, the top commander for U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria said Sunday.

Finan, 34, died on Oct. 20 from injuries sustained when his own vehicle hit a roadside bomb. He was remembered for his sacrifice by both Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, the top U.S. commander for Operation Inherent Resolve, and Defense Secretary Ash Carter in Irbil on Sunday. The two leaders were in Irbil to discuss the Mosul offensive with members of the Kurdistan Regional Government.
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2 Fort Hood soldiers killed by Iraqi trainee

2 Hood soldiers shot by Iraqi trainee ID'd
The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Jan 18, 2011 8:25:37 EST
WASHINGTON — The Defense Department has released the identities of two Fort Hood soldiers officials say were shot dead by an Iraqi soldier they were training.

A Pentagon statement issued Monday says 23-year-old Sgt. Michael P. Bartley of Barnhill, Ill., and 43-year-old Spc. Martin J. Lamar of Sacramento, Calif., died when the trainee shot them with small-arms fire Saturday in Mosul, Iraq.
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2 Hood soldiers shot by Iraqi trainee

Fort Wainwright soldier recalls saving medic

Fort Wainwright soldier recalls saving medic from insurgent grenade
by Chris Freiberg

FAIRBANKS — Sgt. Ricardo Montoya didn’t feel anything as the grenade blew up at his feet.

It was May 18, and the 31-year-old father of six was on patrol in Mosul, Iraq, as part of his second deployment to the country.

While most of Fort Wainwright’s 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team was stationed in Iraq’s northeastern Diyala province, Montoya and the rest of Alpha Company from the 1-5 Infantry were attached to another brigade several months earlier and sent further north to Mosul.
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Fort Wainwright soldier recalls saving medic

Army continues criminal probes into Iraq electrocutions

Army continues criminal probes into Iraq electrocutions
By Lisa M. Novak, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Sunday, October 4, 2009
It was near 100 degrees on May 8, 2004, when Spc. Chase Whitham and a few other soldiers decided to cool off in the swimming pool at Forward Operating Base Patriot in Mosul, Iraq.

A junior officer had recently renovated the pool, but a battalion commander had placed the pool off-limits until final precautions could be made.

No signs were posted, so Whitham and the others jumped in. The 21-year-old from Oregon was electrocuted when he touched a metal pipe that was circulating the pool water. It was later determined that the water pump had shorted and was not properly grounded.

Whitham was one of the first Americans to be killed by electrical problems at U.S. bases in Iraq.
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http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=65180

Gunman in Iraqi uniform kills 2 U.S. soldiers, 3 wounded

Gunman in Iraqi uniform kills 2 U.S. soldiers

By Brian Murphy - The Associated Press
Posted : Saturday May 2, 2009 14:49:46 EDT

BAGHDAD — A gunman wearing an Iraqi army uniform opened fire on a U.S. military team Saturday, killing two American soldiers and wounding three others at a combat outpost in northern Iraq, the military said.

A military statement said the attacker was killed after the ambush-style assault 12 miles south of Mosul, which is one of the last urban strongholds for Sunni insurgents.

In the past, attackers have used military and police uniforms to bypass checkpoints and gain access to heavily guarded bases. But Iraqi military officials said the gunman was an Iraqi soldier who also served as a Sunni Muslim preacher for an army unit.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
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Gunman in Iraqi uniform kills 2 U.S. soldiers

All five soldiers killed in Mosul bomb blast from Fort Carson

Army IDs 5 Carson soldiers killed in Iraq

The Associated Press
Posted : Sunday Apr 12, 2009 11:04:51 EDT

FORT CARSON, Colo. — Military officials say five Fort Carson soldiers were killed by in improvised explosive in Mosul, Iraq.

The Department of Defense said Sunday the soldiers were in their military vehicle Friday when they were hit by a “suicide vehicle-borne” explosive. No other details were released.

The soldiers killed in the attack were

Staff Sgt. Gary L. Woods Jr., 24, of Lebanon Junction, Ky.;

Staff Sgt. Bryan E. Hall, 32, of Elk Grove, Calif.;

Sgt. Edward W. Forrest Jr., 25, of St. Louis, Mo.;

Cpl. Jason G. Pautsch, 20, of Davenport, Iowa;

Pvt. Bryce E. Gautier, 22, of Cypress, Calif.

All were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division of Fort Carson, Colo.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/04/ap_carson_soldiers_iraq_041209/

PTSD:General's story highlights combat stress

Gen. Carter Ham, to call him a hero would be putting it mildly. He's a hero to the troops not just because he's a high ranking officer, but because he is willing to speak out on having PTSD. That is a kind of courage very few in his position are willing to do.

When men like my husband came home from Vietnam, they knew something had changed inside of them but they didn't know what it was. They suffered in silence just as generations before them suffered. When PTSD was first used in 1976 with a study commissioned by the DAV, news was slowly reaching the veterans. While they fought to have it recognized as wound caused by their service, it was very difficult to talk about. The perception that there was something wrong with them kept too many from even seeking help to heal.

After 26 years of doing outreach work and 24 years of marriage, my husband finally reached the point when he was ready for me to actually use my married legal name. Up until now it was almost as if he was ashamed to be wounded. Imagine that! What gave him the comfort was not anything I did. It came from seeing reports on the news and people he knows coming out, talking about it without any shame whatsoever. Hearing the courageous words from others is what brought him peace with PTSD. Because of great care from the VA, after a long battle with them, he's living a life instead of just existing in one slowly dying inside.

General Ham does not realize what he's just done by being willing to talk about this wound and normalize it. He's normal but combat and all other trauma related events are not part of normal life. It's all a normal reaction to abnormal events. Simple as that.

While there are still some commanders in the military today dismissing PTSD, calling it anything other than what it is, still exist and injure their troops, General Ham has shown what true care and leadership is. Plan on seeing a lot more veterans coming forward seeking help because of General Ham.

Senior Chaplain Kathie "Costos" DiCesare
International Fellowship of Chaplains
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.com coming soon!
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com
www.youtube.com/NamGuardianAngel
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington

Then-Col. Gary Patton salutes during a service for Staff Sgt. Thomas Vitagliano, Pfc. George Geer and Pfc. Jesus Fonseca. The men died Jan. 17, 2005, in Ramadi.
By Joe Raedle, Getty Images

General's story highlights combat stress
USA Today - USA

By Tom Vanden Brook

Gen. Carter Ham was among the best of the best — tough, smart and strong — an elite soldier in a battle-hardened Army. At the Pentagon, his star was rising.

In Iraq, he was in command in the north during the early part of the war, when the insurgency became more aggressive. Shortly before he was to return home, on Dec. 21, 2004, a suicide bomber blew himself up in a mess hall at a U.S. military base near Mosul and killed 22 people, including 14 U.S. troops. Ham arrived at the scene 20 minutes later to find the devastation.

When Ham returned from Mosul to Fort Lewis, Wash., in February 2005, something in the affable officer was missing. Loud noises startled him. Sleep didn't come easily.

"When he came back, all of him didn't come back. … Pieces of him the way he used to be were perhaps left back there," says his wife, Christi. "I didn't get the whole guy I'd sent away."

Today, Ham, 56, is one of only 12 four-star generals in the Army. He commands all U.S. soldiers in Europe. The stress of his combat service could have derailed his career, but Ham says he realized that he needed help transitioning from life on the battlefields of Iraq to the halls of power at the Pentagon. So he sought screening for post-traumatic stress and got counseling from a chaplain. That helped him "get realigned," he says.

"You need somebody to assure you that it's not abnormal," Ham says. "It's not abnormal to have difficulty sleeping. It's not abnormal to be jumpy at loud sounds. It's not abnormal to find yourself with mood swings at seemingly trivial matters. More than anything else, just to be able to say that out loud."

The willingness of Ham, one of the military's top officers, to speak candidly with USA TODAY for the first time about post-traumatic stress represents a tectonic shift for a military system in which seeking such help has long been seen as a sign of weakness.

It's also a recognition of the seriousness of combat stress, which can often worsen to become post-traumatic stress disorder.
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US helicopter down in Iraq's Mosul, two dead

US helicopter down in Iraq's Mosul, two dead

15 Nov 2008 19:44:06 GMT
Source: Reuters
(Adds deaths)

BAGHDAD, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Two U.S. soldiers were killed in a helicopter accident in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on Saturday, a military spokeswoman said.

The helicopter involved was an OH-58 Kiowa Warrior, a small scout helicopter fitted with weapons. It hit overhead cables as it was attempting to land.

"There has been a helicopter incident in Mosul. They're classifying it now as a hard landing when it came in contact with wires," Captain Charles Calio said earlier on Saturday.
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http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LF144121.htm

Iraq: Islamist group threatens churches in Mosul

Iraq: Islamist group threatens churches in Mosul


Mosul, 2 July (AKI) - An Islamist group has sent threatening letters to Assyrian churches in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, asking them not to cooperate with US forces.

The letter sent by The Batallion of Just Punishment, Jihad Base in Mesopotamia, also opposes the establishment of a sectarian Assyrian-Christian police force, reported the Assyrian International News Agency on Wednesday.

"We caution and warn anyone who tries to rob us through dealings with the Americans or through the spreading of American forces and/or police to protect the Holy Shrines in the Islamic Republic of Iraq, that these shrines would remain target of the freedom fighters," the letter said.

"We remind the dhimmi people [Jews and Christians] that Iraq is for the noble Iraqis and not for how you are now."

The Islamist group also refers to Assyrian Christians as 'Dhimmi', or a non-Muslim subject of the state governed by Islamic Sharia law.

"I suspect this letter may have actually come from Ansar Al-Islam," said an unnamed Assyrian community leader, referring to the Kurdish Islamist group affiliated with al-Qaeda.

"The Kurds don't want us to have our own police force."
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http://www.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/Religion/?id=1.0.2304618903
Linked from ICasualties.org

A Local Soldier's Long Road Home: Dealing With PTSD

A Local Soldier's Long Road Home: Dealing With PTSD

POSTED: 10:38 pm EST February 22, 2008

WHEELING, W.Va. -- A local Iraq war veteran opened up to NEWS9 about the daily struggles of living with post traumatic stress disorder.

When soldiers leave the war zone, it’s not always a happy homecoming.

"When I came home the first time,” said Ryan Flowers, 25, of Moundsville, “I thought something wasn't right. I felt out of place."

Flowers is one of thousands of Iraq veterans dealing with PTSD.

He served two tours in Iraq, and his jobs included being a heavy wheel mechanic and convoy security.

Flowers’ job in convoy security required him to protect groups of civilians and war supplies.

“Making sure we could get supplies from one camp to another to support the ongoing war effort,” said Flowers.

While Flowers worked at night, his visions are clear as day.

“A night in December, we were leaving Mosul, and there was an explosion on the horizon," said Flowers. “To see an explosion come up over the horizon from that distance, it was my best friend who was in that explosion. He's OK, as OK as you can be."
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http://www.wtov9.com/news/15384598/detail.html

Troops attacked in Mosul as NBC camera rolls

Iraqi insurgents attack during NBC interview
David Edwards and Nick Juliano
Published: Wednesday February 6, 2008
Mosul now more dangerous than two years ago, soldier says
As the war in Iraq largely slips from the front of Americans' minds, a new report from Mosul demonstrates the daily hardships and constant threat of attack still faced by US troops trying to pacify the country.
NBC's Richard Engel is in the middle of an interview with one member of the Army's 3rd Armored Calvary Regiment when their combat outpost in Mosul comes under attack. Engel and the soldier he is interviewing -- both outfitted in helmets and body armor -- flinch as the first bullets fly toward the makeshift base.
"It's clear the war here is as intense as ever," Engel says, narrating his piece.
go here for the rest and the video
http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Iraqi_insurgents_attack_during_NBC_interview_0206.html

I know watching videos of combat at difficult to get through, but think of what they go through and endure it for their sake. If you are ever going to understand why so many end up with PTSD, you need to watch. I promise that I will never put up any video that is gory because of how many coming here have PTSD.